Marriage and Heredity : a View of Psychological Evolution. By
J. F. Nisbet. (Ward and Downey.)—Mr. Nisbet gives in his first chapter some curious facts to prove that, as he puts it, "there is not a single sentiment of the modern European bearing upon marriage that has not been and is not habitually violated by some section of the human family." Respect for woman has, in fact, been in the main developed out of "the purity doctrines of the Christian Church," a valuable statement, when a learned Scotch Professor has discovered that Christian thought has been adverse to woman's advancement. But there is something to be said for the apparent paradox that Christian sentiment has sometimes acted in spite of the Christian Church. The law of heredity is made the sub- ject of some interesting inquiries. One curious instance is quoted of the son of a French father and a negress in the Isle of France. This man was physically undistinguishable from a negro, but had all the mental and moral characteristics of a white man. There is a noteworthy chapter on the marriage of cousins. The author's view seems to be that in itself it is harmless, but that when there is a family tendency to disease, mental or bodily, it is very likely to be dangerous, and on the whole, therefore, should be avoided. This, of course, is not a book for all readers, but it contains facts and conclusions which are interesting, and should be useful, if marriage were more a matter of reason and deliberate choice than it is.
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